Top prizes were handed out by the CineGouna Platform (Cgp) at the El Gouna Film Festival this week to projects in various stages of inception or completion. Winning a $15,000 prize for a project in development, “Theft of Fire” is Palestinian filmmaker Amer Shomali’s hybrid documentary, retelling the true story of an art heist “that never happened” to steal back antiquities pilfered from Palestinian lands by former Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Dayan.
Produced by Rashid Abdelhamid, the film is in the early stages of development but has already secured Canadian co-production.
“She Was Not Alone” won the equivalent Cgp Award for a film in postproduction. Produced by Huda Al Kadhimi and Huma Gupta and directed by Iraq’s Hussein Al-Asadi, the documentary gives a character portrait of Fatima, a nomad who tends for her buffalos in the poisoned marshes of Iraq as her island and way of life are threatened...
Produced by Rashid Abdelhamid, the film is in the early stages of development but has already secured Canadian co-production.
“She Was Not Alone” won the equivalent Cgp Award for a film in postproduction. Produced by Huda Al Kadhimi and Huma Gupta and directed by Iraq’s Hussein Al-Asadi, the documentary gives a character portrait of Fatima, a nomad who tends for her buffalos in the poisoned marshes of Iraq as her island and way of life are threatened...
- 12/21/2023
- by John Bleasdale
- Variety Film + TV
Dubai-based independent film distributor and producer Front Row Filmed Entertainment has acquired global rights – excluding theatrical, which is limited to the Mena region – for Lebanese drama “Death of a Virgin and the Sin of Not Living” that launched last year from Berlin’s Panorama section.
Produced by Beirut-based Bee On Set Productions, “Death of a Virgin” marks director George Peter Barbari’s feature debut. It stars newcomers Etienne Assal, Adnan Khabbaz, Jean-Paul Franjieh and Elie Dankoura Saad. Set in Batroun, one of Lebanon’s most famous coastal cities, pic follows a group of troubled teens who are taking their friend Etienne (Assal) to a sex worker in an attempt to make him lose his virginity.
Variety in its review called the film “an impressive debut” that “burrows inside until you find yourself flooded by the fragility of life, with all its beauty and sorrow.”
Since launching from Berlin, “Death of...
Produced by Beirut-based Bee On Set Productions, “Death of a Virgin” marks director George Peter Barbari’s feature debut. It stars newcomers Etienne Assal, Adnan Khabbaz, Jean-Paul Franjieh and Elie Dankoura Saad. Set in Batroun, one of Lebanon’s most famous coastal cities, pic follows a group of troubled teens who are taking their friend Etienne (Assal) to a sex worker in an attempt to make him lose his virginity.
Variety in its review called the film “an impressive debut” that “burrows inside until you find yourself flooded by the fragility of life, with all its beauty and sorrow.”
Since launching from Berlin, “Death of...
- 2/16/2022
- by Nick Vivarelli
- Variety Film + TV
The Berlin Film Festival has revealed 12 titles from 16 countries that will compete in the festival’s Encounters strand, including Denis Côté’s “Social Hygiene” from Canada, Alice Diop’s “We” from France, and Fern Silva’s “Rock Bottom Riser” from the U.S.
The selections also take in “As I Want” (Egypt/France/Norway/Palestine) by Samaher Alqadi; “Azor” (Switzerland/France/Argentina) by Andreas Fontana; “The Beta Test” (U.S./U.K.) by Jim Cummings, Pj McCabe; and “Bloodsuckers (Germany) by Julian Radlmaier.
Also competing will be “The Girl and the Spider” (Switzerland) by Ramon Zürcher, Silvan Zürcher; “District Terminal” (Iran/Germany) by Bardia Yadegari, Ehsan Mirhosseini; “Moon, 66 Questions” (Greece/France) by Jacqueline Lentzou; “The Scary of Sixty-First” (U.S.) by Dasha Nekrasova; and “Taste” (Vietnam/Singapore/France/Thailand/Germany/Taiwan) by Lê Bảo.
The Encounters strand supports new or innovative voices in cinema. A jury will choose winners for best film,...
The selections also take in “As I Want” (Egypt/France/Norway/Palestine) by Samaher Alqadi; “Azor” (Switzerland/France/Argentina) by Andreas Fontana; “The Beta Test” (U.S./U.K.) by Jim Cummings, Pj McCabe; and “Bloodsuckers (Germany) by Julian Radlmaier.
Also competing will be “The Girl and the Spider” (Switzerland) by Ramon Zürcher, Silvan Zürcher; “District Terminal” (Iran/Germany) by Bardia Yadegari, Ehsan Mirhosseini; “Moon, 66 Questions” (Greece/France) by Jacqueline Lentzou; “The Scary of Sixty-First” (U.S.) by Dasha Nekrasova; and “Taste” (Vietnam/Singapore/France/Thailand/Germany/Taiwan) by Lê Bảo.
The Encounters strand supports new or innovative voices in cinema. A jury will choose winners for best film,...
- 2/10/2021
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
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